Illuminator for DPM scanner

ABSTRACT

A compact illuminator for a direct part marking (DPM) scanner is provided to perform dual-field, multi-color, multi-directional, multi-distance illumination functions. The illuminator can selectively provide dark field and bright field illumination with broad spectrum white or narrow band color, in combination with directions for near contact distance as well as far distance barcode readings. Specifically, illuminator includes a front edge illuminator with customized LED optics, a dome diffuser, an LED board assembly, and a reflective sleeve surrounding the dome diffuser. The board assembly can further include an alternative on/off plural point source bright field spot illuminating system. A method for scanning DPM indicia focuses on generating illumination light using an illumination assembly, illuminating the DPM indicia, detecting reflected and/or scattered light, and capturing under different illumination conditions and combining at least two consecutive images of the DPM indicia, followed by processing and decoding the obtained image.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

The present application claims the benefit of Chinese Patent Application for Invention No. 201611234022.X for an Illuminator for DPM Scanner filed Dec. 28, 2016, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to direct part marking (DPM) scanners, and more particularly to an illuminator for DPM scanners, and a method for scanning DPM indicia.

BACKGROUND

Generally speaking, direct part marking (DPM) scanner requires specific illumination settings. Such settings may include dark field and bright field, color and broad spectrum, single and multi-direction, near distance and far distance illumination, etc. Many modern DPM scanners satisfy these requirements by implementing complicated illuminator assembly structure with bulky optical light guide, diffuser and reflector, and large numbers of light-emitting diodes (LEDs), which results in high power consumption and low light efficiency. For example, in E.P. Pat. No. 1,112,483 issued to Stern, and U.S. Pat. No. 8,374,498 issued to Pastore, large amounts of LEDs are employed, thus rendering the inventions bulky and inconvenient for handheld application. Moreover, multiple conventional devices face a specular reflection hot spot problem, which appears to be the key issue for scanning high-density 2D code on smooth or laminated substrate, or ink with specular reflection.

Therefore, a need exists for a multi-functional illuminator assembly with compact size and minimal amount of LEDs to provide adequate illumination and satisfy the requirements previously addressed with complicated multi-piece optical systems.

SUMMARY

Accordingly, in one aspect, the present invention embraces an illuminator for a direct part marking (DPM) scanner, capable of providing sufficient compact illumination. Such illuminator can be easily integrated into a portable imaging barcode scanner to satisfy DPM scanning needs.

In an exemplary embodiment, a DPM illuminator aims to provide dual-field, multi-color, multi-directional, multi-distance illumination functions. The compact illuminator can selectively provide dark field and bright field illumination with broad spectrum white or narrow band color, in combination with directions for near contact distance as well as far distance barcode readings. Specifically, such performance is achieved by employing front edge illuminator with customized LED optics, a dome diffuser, an LED assembly, and a reflective sleeve at least partially surrounding the dome diffuser. Additionally, use of plural point source bright field spot illuminating system can effectively eliminate the specular reflection hot spot problem.

In another exemplary embodiment, a scanner illumination assembly aims to employ a single printed circuit board assembly with six color LEDs for dark field illumination, four white and/or blue LEDs for diffused bright field illumination, and an alternative on/off plural point bright field spot illumination assembly, combined with a superellipsoidal dome, and a front edge illuminator assembly to prevent specular reflection and provide far distance non-contact reading mode while using a small amount of LEDs.

In another aspect, the present invention embraces a method for scanning DPM indicia focusing on generating illumination light using an illumination assembly, illuminating the DPM indicia, detecting reflected and/or scattered light, and capturing and combining at least two consecutive images of the DPM indicia under different illumination conditions, followed by processing and decoding of the obtained combined image.

The foregoing illustrative summary, as well as other exemplary objectives and/or advantages of the invention, and the manner in which the same are accomplished, are further explained within the following detailed description and its accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1A schematically depicts a top view of an illuminator for a direct part marking (DPM) scanner, according to an embodiment.

FIG. 1B schematically depicts a side view of an illuminator for a DPM scanner, according to an embodiment.

FIG. 1C schematically depicts an exploded view of an illuminator for a DPM scanner, according to an embodiment.

FIG. 2A schematically depicts a top view of a dome diffuser of an illuminator for a DPM scanner, according to an embodiment.

FIG. 2B schematically depicts a side view of a dome diffuser of an illuminator for a DPM scanner, according to an embodiment.

FIG. 2C schematically depicts a back view of a dome diffuser of an illuminator for a DPM scanner, according to an embodiment.

FIG. 2D schematically depicts a prospective view of a dome diffuser of an illuminator for a DPM scanner, according to an embodiment.

FIG. 3A schematically depicts a side view of an enclosure with front edge freeform optics, according to an embodiment.

FIG. 3B schematically depicts a prospective view of an enclosure with front edge freeform optics, according to an embodiment.

FIG. 3C schematically depicts a side view of an enclosure with front edge cylindrical optics, according to an embodiment.

FIG. 3D schematically depicts a prospective view of an enclosure with front edge cylindrical optics, according to an embodiment.

FIG. 4 schematically depicts a method for scanning DPM indicia, according to an embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The present invention embraces an illuminator for a direct part marking (DPM) scanner, and a method for scanning DPM indicia. According to the present invention, the illuminator can provide dual-field, multi-color, multi-dimensional, multi-distance illumination functions, and prevent specular reflection, while featuring compact size, high efficiency, and low power consumption.

FIGS. 1A-1C show an illuminator 100 for a direct part marking scanner, according to an embodiment. Specifically, FIG. 1A shows a top view, FIG. 1B shows a side view, and FIG. 1C shows an exploded view of the illuminator 100. As shown in detail in FIG. 1C, the illuminator 100 includes an imager window 102, and front edge illuminator optics 104 disposed between the imager window 102 and a region of interest. The optics 104 and imager window 102 define a field of view and an optical axis 106. An enclosure 108 is configured to support the optics 104 at a distance defined by the field of view. A dome diffuser 110 (also shown in FIGS. 2A-2D) is coaxially aligned with the optical axis 106. A front end 112 of the dome diffuser 110 at least partially surrounds the field of view proximate to the enclosure 108, and a rear end 114 is proximate to the imager window 102. An LED assembly 116 is coaxially aligned with the optical axis 106, and is proximal to the rear end 114 of the dome diffuser 110. A reflective sleeve 118 is coaxially aligned with the optical axis 106, and at least partially surrounds the dome diffuser 110. A first end of the reflective sleeve 118 is operably coupled to the enclosure 108, and a second end is operably coupled to the LED assembly 116.

In an embodiment, the LED assembly can include a dark field illuminating system, a plural point source bright field spot illuminating system, and a diffused bright field illuminating system.

Front edge illuminator assembly having the illuminator optics 104 can provide high efficiency near contact distance dark field illumination to prevent specular reflection. Additionally, the front edge illuminator assembly can provide options for far distance non-contact reading without additional LEDs. In an embodiment, the front edge illuminator optics 104 can include a freeform lens 120 (FIG. 3A, side view, and FIG. 3B, prospective view), such as a non-rotational symmetric optics. In another embodiment, the front edge illuminator optics 104 can include a cylindrical optics 122 (FIG. 3C, side view, and FIG. 3D, prospective view). The DPM scanner can include a portable DPM scanner.

According to an embodiment, a scanner illumination assembly 100 includes a front edge illuminator assembly 124 operatively coupled to a customized LED optics 104, and a printed circuit board (PCB) assembly 116 having a front portion 126 and a back portion 128. The front portion 126 of the PCB assembly 116 includes at least six color LEDs 130 for dark field illumination, and the back portion 128 includes at least four white and/or blue LEDs 132 near four corners of the board assembly 116, and an alternative on/off plural point source bright field spot illumination assembly 134. Additionally, the illumination assembly 100 includes a superellipsoidal dome 110 (also shown in FIGS. 2A-2D) having a front end 112 operatively coupled to the front edge illuminator assembly 124, and a rear end 114 having a protective window with a camera opening and operatively coupled to the PCB assembly 116. The dome 110 includes at least two optically clear openings 136, and a camera aimer beam opening 138 near the rear end 114 of the dome 110. An assembly enclosure 108 includes an inner sleeve 118, a front end operatively coupled to the front edge illuminator assembly 124, and a rear end operatively coupled to the printed circuit board assembly 116.

In one embodiment, the front edge illuminator assembly 124 can include a dual-distance freeform LED lens cap with split optical design 120 configured to provide near contact and far distance illumination (FIG. 3A, side view, and FIG. 3B, prospective view). In another embodiment, the front edge illuminator assembly 124 can include a continuous cylindrical optics 122 surrounding LEDs disposed in the front of the assembly 124 (FIG. 3C, side view, and FIG. 3D, prospective view). Additionally, the cylindrical optics 122 can include at least a partial reflective and/or refractive surface, configured to provide near contact and far distance illumination with simple optical structure for improved manufacturability.

The printed circuit board assembly 116 can include a rigid-flex PCB assembly. The color LEDs 130 disposed at the front portion 126 can be adapted to produce improved contrast of the direct marking features that are generally hard to image. In an embodiment, the plural point source bright field spot illumination assembly 134 can include at least two spot illumination red LEDs with aspheric lens caps, the LEDs can be aligned with the optically clear openings 136 in the superellipsoidal dome 110. The aspheric lens caps can be configured to match the field of view of the illumination with uniform illumination. The spot illumination red LEDs, acting as alternative point sources with minimum size hot spot, may be adapted to provide plural point sources bright field illumination for at least partially eliminating the specular reflection hot spot problem of polished object imaging. Further combining at least two consecutive images taken with such an illuminator assembly under different illumination conditions may provide specular reflection free results.

In an embodiment, the white and/or blue LEDs 132 can further include batwing LED lens caps disposed in front of the LEDs 132. The batwing LED lens caps may be used to improve uniformity output from superellipsoidal dome 120. Additionally or alternatively, the customized LED optics 104 can include polycarbonate and/or poly(methyl methacrylate) injection molded LED optics. Such optics may be used to redistribute LED input for near contact dark field output with option of far distance bright field output.

The injection molding superellipsoidal dome 110 can be configured to provide diffused bright field illumination for near contact bright field imaging, by directing the bright field illumination from the white and/or blue LEDs 132. Potential light non-uniformity may be reduced by introducing minimal surface curvature changes, as defined by the shape of the dome 110. Additionally, the dome 110 can be designed to closely match the contact field of view and internal optical path with minimum dimensions. The inner sleeve 118 can be designed to provide high efficiency uniform bright field illumination, and can be at least partially covered with a highly reflective coating, thus efficiently utilizing the LED output.

FIG. 4 shows a method 400 for scanning a direct part marking indicia, according to an embodiment. At 402, illumination light is generated using an illumination assembly operatively coupled to a DPM scanner. At 404, the DPM indicia is illuminated with the illumination light. At 406, light reflected and/or scattered from the DPM indicia is detected to capture an image of the DPM indicia. At 408, at least two images of the DPM indicia are captured under different illumination conditions. At 410, at least two consecutive images captured under different illumination conditions are combined to obtain a combined image. At 412, the combined image of the DPM indicia is processed and decoded.

In an embodiment, the generating an illumination light can include adjusting bright field illumination, adjusting dark field illumination, and/or adjusting diffused light illumination. Additionally, the bright field illumination adjustment can include using at least two alternative on/off spot illumination LEDs with aspheric lens caps. The method 400 can further include reducing specular reflection of the DPM indicia using an edge illuminator disposed in front of the illumination assembly.

Thus, a DPM illuminator can provide dual-field, multi-color, multi-directional, multi-distance illumination functions. The illuminator can selectively provide dark field and bright field illumination with broad spectrum white or narrow band color, in combination with directions for near contact distance as well as far distance barcode readings. At the same time, compared to conventional similar devices, the number of LEDs employed in the present invention, is low, resulting in lower energy consumption. Additionally, simple illumination optics can result in a less bulk structure and higher efficiency, when compared to conventional illuminators used in DPM scanners.

Device and method components are meant to show only those specific details that are pertinent to understanding the embodiments of the present disclosure so as not to obscure the disclosure with details that will be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art having the benefit of the description herein. In various embodiments, the sequence in which the elements of appear in exemplary embodiments disclosed herein may vary. Two or more method steps may be performed simultaneously or in a different order than the sequence in which the elements appear in the exemplary embodiments. A device or structure that is “configured” in a certain way is configured in at least that way, but may also be configured in ways that are not listed.

To supplement the present disclosure, this application incorporates entirely by reference the following commonly assigned patents, patent application publications, and patent applications:

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In the specification and/or figures, typical embodiments of the invention have been disclosed. The present invention is not limited to such exemplary embodiments. The use of the term “and/or” includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items. The figures are schematic representations and so are not necessarily drawn to scale. Unless otherwise noted, specific terms have been used in a generic and descriptive sense and not for purposes of limitation. 

The invention claimed is:
 1. An illuminator for a direct part marking (DPM) scanner, the illuminator comprising: an imager window; front edge illuminator optics disposed between the imager window and a region of interest, the front edge illuminator optics and imager window defining a field of view and an optical axis; an enclosure configured to support the front edge illuminator optics at a distance defined by the field of view; a dome diffuser coaxially aligned with the optical axis, having a front end at least partially surrounding the field of view proximate to the enclosure, and a rear end proximate to the imager window, the dome having at least two optically clear openings configured to facilitate illumination of an object under different illumination conditions to reduce specular reflection by combining a first image and a second image taken with different illumination, wherein a first image is captured with illumination via a first optically clear opening of the two optically clear openings, and a second image is captured with illumination via a second optically clear opening of the two optically clear openings; an LED assembly coaxially aligned with the optical axis, and proximal to the rear end of the dome diffuser; and a reflective sleeve coaxially aligned with the optical axis and at least partially surrounding the dome diffuser, having a first end operably coupled to the enclosure and a second end operably coupled to the LED assembly.
 2. The illuminator according to claim 1, wherein the LED assembly comprises: a dark field illuminating system; a plural point source bright field spot illuminating system; and a diffused bright field illuminating system.
 3. The illuminator according to claim 1, wherein the front edge illuminator optics comprises a freeform lens.
 4. The illuminator according to claim 3, wherein the freeform lens is a non-rotational symmetric optics.
 5. The illuminator according to claim 1, wherein the front edge illuminator optics comprises a cylindrical optics.
 6. The illuminator according to claim 1, wherein the DPM scanner comprises a portable DPM scanner.
 7. The illuminator according to claim 1, wherein the dome diffuser is a superellipsoidal dome having at least two optically clear openings aligned with two spot illumination light sources generating illumination light, wherein the generated illumination light illuminates a direct part marking (DPM) indicia, wherein the superellipsoidal provides minimal surface curvature changes to reduce non-uniformity of the generated illumination light.
 8. A scanner illumination assembly, comprising: a front edge illuminator assembly operatively coupled to a customized LED optics; a printed circuit board assembly having a front portion and a back portion, the front portion having at least six color LEDs for dark field illumination, and the back portion having at least four white and/or blue LEDs near four corners of the printed circuit board assembly, and an alternative on/off plural point source bright field spot illumination assembly; a superellipsoidal dome having a front end operatively coupled to the front edge illuminator assembly, and a rear end having a protective window with a camera opening and operatively coupled to the printed circuit board assembly, the dome having at least two optically clear openings configured to facilitate illumination of an object under different illumination conditions to reduce specular reflection by combining images taken with different illumination, wherein a first image is captured with illumination via a first optically clear opening of the two optically clear openings, and a second image is captured with illumination via a second optically clear opening of the two optically clear openings, and a camera aimer beam opening near the rear end of the dome; and an assembly enclosure having an inner sleeve, a front end operatively coupled to the front edge illuminator assembly, and a rear end operatively coupled to the printed circuit board assembly.
 9. The scanner illumination assembly of claim 8, wherein the plural point source bright field spot illumination assembly comprises at least two spot illumination red LEDs with aspheric lens caps, the LEDs aligned with the optically clear openings in the dome.
 10. The scanner illumination assembly of claim 8, wherein the front edge illuminator assembly comprises a dual-distance freeform LED lens cap with split optical design.
 11. The scanner illumination assembly of claim 8, wherein the front edge illuminator assembly comprises a cylindrical optics.
 12. The scanner illumination assembly of claim 11, wherein the cylindrical optics comprises at least a partial reflective and/or refractive surface.
 13. The scanner illumination assembly of claim 8, wherein the printed circuit board assembly comprises a rigid-flex printed circuit board assembly.
 14. The scanner illumination assembly of claim 8, wherein the inner sleeve of the assembly enclosure is at least partially covered with a reflective coating.
 15. The scanner illumination assembly of claim 8, wherein the white and/or blue LEDs further comprise batwing LED lens caps disposed in front of the LEDs.
 16. The scanner illumination assembly of claim 8, wherein the customized LED optics comprise polycarbonate and/or poly(methyl methacrylate) injection molded LED optics.
 17. A method for scanning direct part marking (DPM) indicia, comprising: generating illumination light using two spot illumination light sources aligned with two optically clear openings in a superellipsoidal dome in an illumination assembly operatively coupled to a DPM scanner, the at least two optically clear openings in the superellipsoidal dome being configured to facilitate illumination of an object under different illumination conditions to reduce specular reflection by combining images taken with different illumination; illuminating the DPM indicia with the illumination light; detecting light reflected and/or scattered from the DPM indicia to capture an image of the DPM indicia; capturing at least two images of the DPM indicia under different illumination conditions; combining at least two consecutive images captured under different illumination conditions, wherein a first image is captured with illumination via a first optically clear opening of the two optically clear openings, and a second image is captured with illumination via a second optically clear opening of the two optically clear openings to obtain a combined image; and processing and decoding the combined image of the DPM indicia.
 18. The method of claim 17, wherein the generating an illumination light comprises: adjusting bright field illumination; adjusting dark field illumination; and/or adjusting diffused light illumination.
 19. The method of claim 18, wherein the bright field illumination adjustment comprises using at least two alternative on/off spot illumination LEDs with aspheric lens caps.
 20. The method of claim 17, further including reducing the specular reflection of the DPM indicia using an edge illuminator disposed in front of the illumination assembly. 